Mr Palmer's Problem
by Gail Cregg
Summary: Jimmy has a problem but luckily Abby is able to provide some words of wisdom. Tie-in with Exposed but it's not necessary to read that to understand this.


Contains a blink and you'll miss it spoiler for Shabbat Shalom & Shiva.

MR PALMER'S PROBLEM.

The sound of the sliding doors opening cause Abby to look up from her computer.  
"Hey Jimmy. What's up?" she asks her friend who is now nervously pacing in front of the desk.  
"Up? Well, nothing's really up...that is...I mean...could say..."  
"Stop." The command is given in a tone that is firm but gentle. Jimmy stops pacing and meets her worried gaze.  
"There's something I need your advice on Abby."  
"I'll help if I can but why didn't you take this to Ducky?"  
Palmer blushes. "Ah. This problem is of a _personal_ nature and I thought it more appropriate to come to a friend and not my boss."  
Abby grins at him. "Okay. So what is it? Trouble with Breena? Tony teasing you again? Med school issues? Your stuttering around Gibbs? I've told you he really is a big teddy bear when you get to know him."  
"Actually it's none of those. Anyway, I think my Gibbs induced stutter has been getting much better lately."  
"It has."  
"No the problem is with my hobby."  
"Your writing of fan fic based on the characters from McGee's or should I say Mr Thom E. Gemcity's books?"  
"Exactly. With the new book coming out later this year and the talk about a movie based on the first book in the Tibbs series there's been renewed interest in the fan fic."  
"That's great. I know you love to write and surely having people who want to read is a _good _thing?"  
"Normally I'd agree." He nods. "But I'm having some creative stifling as McGee calls it and the fandom has been...not to put too fine a point on it...a bit nuts recently."  
"Nuts how?"  
"With their suggestions of what should happen and in many cases their insistence that authors should only write the characters a certain way or in certain pairings."  
"That is crazy. I guess it's like fans sending actors pictures of themselves. Some people just get too invested in their hobbies or can't tell fact from fiction." She wrinkles her nose. "That's why I'd never want to be an actor. Out in the limelight you're a target for the crazies. I thought the fun of fan fic writing was that you could do anything you liked with the characters?"  
"That's what I've always thought. I like to stick fairly close to canon but there's plenty of authors who write AU or change the character's sexual orientation or whatever. That's their choice and I'm cool with it. There's so many fics out there it really shouldn't be_ that _hard for those who whine to find something more to their taste. They are getting this stuff for free. It's so frustrating!"  
Abby smiles at him. "Feel better now you've got that out?"  
"Yeah." He smiles back at her.

"So, what's new in fan fic? Have Amy and CIA Agent Dent Wort gotten together yet?"  
"No. That fic hasn't been updated in months. The anti-Lisa movement want Director Ali Ravid to resign so she can go home and take his place. There's a rumor Dan Hurley may be coming back and..."  
"Yay! I love that guy."  
"And that Director Noel Pance's wife will be killed. Some readers think this is great since it means Pibbs can happen." Palmer shakes his head in clear disapproval.  
"Pibbs?"  
"Pance and Tibbs. That's nearly as creepy as the other pairing that's becoming quite popular lately."  
"What's that?"  
"Jarnell. The pairing of..." He almost can't say it. "Pimmy Jalmer and FBI Agent Cornell."  
"Eww. I guess it's true what ya said to me the other day."  
Jimmy frowns as he tries to remember.  
"It's fiction. Anything can happen in fiction. What else is new?"  
"There's talk Tibbs and Cornell's ex-wife Leanne will become an agent and get romantically involved with agent McGregor."  
"WHAT! That's out there. No way is _that _ever going to happen."

"Then there's talk that agent Tat Dodd isn't really dead and will return to the team."  
Abby frowns. "I loved agent Tatania but how are they going to raise her from the dead? I mean she died heroically intervening when agent Tommy went into a psychotic rage brought on by too many Tibbs' slaps and tried to kill the boss."  
"Dunno how they think that will happen. Maybe as a ghost or something..."  
"What did ya want my advice on or did you just want to rant?"  
"Bit of both. What I was going to ask is what do you think I should write? I mean everyone wants something different and it's all contradictory. Those who want Tisa and those who don't. Those who want brother-in-arms McGregor and Tommy and those who want them to be tormentor and victim. Those who want to bring back Rhiannon and Ellie and those who think Director Penny is the only woman for Tibbs."  
"Hmm. I think Jimmy that you should do what I know Tim does. We've talked about this many times. Almost as many times as we've had discussions about jet packs...well with jet packs usually he talks and I pretend to listen..."  
"Abby!"  
"I think you should write what _you_ want to write, however _you_ want to write it and if others like it then that's a bonus."  
"That's great advice." He walks around the desk and hugs her. "Thanks Abs."  
"You're welcome."  
He walks out of the lab with a smile on his face and she returns to her work.


End file.
